Far from Rex and Rover - some of the most popular names for pets are now being taken from TV shows.

But according to research carried out by Teesside veterinary practice White Cross Vets, the most chosen cats’ and dogs’ names are based on human monikers.

The data revealed that Bella, Alfie, Charlie, Lola, Poppy, Molly, Daisy and Oscar are all currently in the top 10 for both dogs and cats.

More recently White Cross, which has practices in Coulby Newham and Redcar, has also seen a surge of pets named after TV and film characters including Elsa from Frozen, Baloo from The Jungle Book and Peppa, inspired by the cartoon pig.

The number of cats and dogs sharing names with Game of Thrones characters, including Khaleesi, Sansa, Brienne and Tyrion, is also into double figures, along with 16 pets called Olive, which is the name of David Beckham’s Cocker Spaniel.

The practice researched the names of all the pets they saw in 2017 and compared them to the hand written ledgers from when the first White Cross Vets opened its first practice in West Yorkshire in 1937.

By comparison, none of the most frequently picked names of today ranked amongst the most popular monikers in White Cross Vets’ ledgers dating back to 1937.

At that time, Susie, Sally, Judy, Penny, Candy, Sam, Betty, Simon, Wendy and Bridget, made up the top ten cat and dog names registered with White Cross Vets.

Rob Reid from White Cross Vets in Coulby Newham, says: “Pets are such an important part of the family, so choosing a name for them is an important and very personal decision.

“The most common names in our research reveal a leaning towards giving pets human names.

“It’s fascinating that this has gone full circle and was also a trend in the late 1930s, before names such as Fido, Patch, Sooty, Duke and Fluffy became popular with cats and dogs.

“However, our data also shows in the last two years that Teddy, Buddy, Luna, Milo and Coco have suddenly become very popular names for both cats and dogs.

“Although they’re not yet prevalent enough to make it into our current top 10 lists, it does suggest that the trend could be moving back towards names more commonly associated with pets.”